Means for holding closed umbrellas and parasols.



PATENTED NOV. 21, 1905.

W. DORR. MEANS FOR HOLDING CLOSED UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY11,1904'.

MEANS FOR HOLDING CLOSED UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 21, 1905.

Application filed May 11,}904- Serial No. 207,402.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WARREN DORR, a citizen of the United States, residing at Gardiner, in the county of Kennebec and State of Maine, have invented new and useful Improvements in Means for Holding Closed Umbrellas and- Parasols, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in means for holding umbrellas or parasols closed; and the invention consists in the combination, with an umbrella or parasol, of the knob which is secured to the stick beyond the point of attachment of the cover, and a ring, the diameter thereof being less than that ofv the knob, which ring is adapted to be passed over part of the umbrella to hold the cover and frame in close engagement with the stick, as will be hereinafter set forth.

Heretofore it has been customary to attach a ring to an umbrella or parasol by a flexible connection, the ring being used to hold the umbrella closed, and when such an umbrella was opened the ring dangled from the cord attached to the stick and rested upon the cover. The cord and freely-moving ring are objectionable for many reasons, and with my improvement such objections are entirely overcome, as the ring is held upon the stick over the cover when the umbrella is opened.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one practical embodiment of my invention, Figure l is a side elevation showing one half of an umbrella closed and the other half raised; and Fig. 2 is a sectional view, on a larger scale-that Fig. 1, showing the position of the ring when the umbrella is raised.

This attachment is intended to be applied to umbrellas and parasols of ordinary construction, and in the drawings, A refers to the stick or rod to which the frame and handle are attached. A ring B, made of metal, wood, rubber, or composition and of such a size that it may be passed over the major portion of the frame and cover toward the ends of the ribs, such ring having an internal diameter of such dimensions that it cannot be readily pressed beyond that part of the cover above the, tips on the ends of the ribs, where the ordinary fastening means are usually attached, the diameter of the umbrella when folded being such at this point as to prevent the ring being pressed downward over the end of the frame nearest the handle.

After the ring B has been placed in position over the tip end of the rod or stick A there is placed upon the tip a knob C of ornamental appearance, preferably of acorn shape, the external diameter of the knob between its ends being slightly in excess of the internal diameter of the ring. The knob has an opening therethrough which embraces the rod and overlies the metal cap, which is usually attached beyond the cover. The knob and ring may both be made of the same material and can be readily transferred from one umbrella to another. They may be sold together as an article of manufacture or as an attachment for umbrellas.

Having thus set forth my invention, I do not wish to be limited to the exact configuration of the parts, as it is obvious that they may be varied and that the knob may be of such construction by being undercut at the portion nearest the top to form a drip-cup and that such undercut portion may partially overlie the rim when the umbrella is raised.

I claim The combination with an umbrella, of a knob that is adapted to be mounted upon the top portion of the staff beyond where the cover is attached thereto, a rigid ring of less internal diameter than the greatest external diameter of the knob, the ring also bearing such relation as to its internal diameter to the staff, ribs, and cover that the ring may be slid over such parts to a point near the tip ends of the ribs to hold the umbrella closed, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereofI have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WARREN DORE.

Witnessesi GUY A. HILDRETH, B. L. MONAGHAN. 

